I remember it as if it were yesterday, though it happened decades ago when I was just eight or nine years old. I have three older brothers and we were all reared in Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Shove! Jerry, Jim, and Frank could usually be found across the street at the elementary school yard playing touch football, but since I was the only daughter in the family, I had more girlie things to do to occupy my time.
Mischievous little gal that I was, however, I was doing something I should not have been doing and was told not...

I love to laugh…at myself and with others. Nothing attracts me more to an individual than if he/she has an astute and keen sense of humor. Even in choosing a mate, a sense of humor was near the top of my list of criterion. Walk with me down marital lane and let’s see who didn’t make the cut: Bill, Glen, Todd, Dan, and Paul—gentlemen who were much taller than I, blonde and dark-haired, suave-looking, handsome, and cerebral but none grabbed my heart.
Then along came David—committed believer, shorter than the rest, deft way with words, intelligent, and with a terrific...

A few months ago, I was walking alone on a sidewalk in Occoquan headed toward my car, after my friend Barb and I had just enjoyed a two-hour lunch at Madigan’s. But before I reached my car, suddenly a white, open topped jeep, sped directly up to that brick-laden sidewalk, inches from where I was walking. A tall gentleman, in sunglasses, emerged quickly from his jeep and approached me abruptly. Oh, no, I thought-- I’m going to be robbed, as I held more tightly onto my long-strapped purse.
Then the unexpected happened: “Mrs. Montanari”? He asked. “Yes,” I blurted out as...

Today is the National Day of Prayer in our nation's capitol from 9:00 A.M. until noon; the adopted scriptural thematic focus is taken from Romans 15:6: "One Voice, United in Prayer." The following is just an excerpt of the "official" prayer written by Anne Graham Lotz, chairwoman of the event:
Lord of the Universe, Lord of this planet, Lord of our hearts. On this National Day of Prayer, we look to you. In the darkness, You are our lightIn the storm, You are our anchorIn our weakness, You are our strength. In our grief, You are our comfortIn our despair,...

I Got a Secret
By Lorraine Montanari
Shhhh…come close—no closer. I need to whisper something in your ear and tell you a secret. What is the secret? you may ask. Well, maybe not so fast. If you’re willing to take a journey with me, let’s discover it together. Game on? I even brought along a map to help us find the way. Ready? Let’s go…
First, you and I need to arrive at a destination where secrets thrive, for our maximum spiritual good, and that it is in the secret place of the Most High where we will...

Pastor Bearden,
As my pastor, I feel it is time that I share something with you. I think you may be surprised but I need to unload my burden and just let it all out.
In my past, I have had several escapades, of which I am not proud, which resulted in the fact that I am a fallen woman. In truth, I was mulling over the idea to use my pain and write a book to help other women, who have experienced what I have, and entitle the book Tales of a Fallen Woman. Just the...

How well I remember a European vacation that my husband, David and I took to Italy, around the turn of the century in 2000. For the past 14 years, we routinely crossed the Atlantic, toured Europe in the summer, and mainly chose those countries to tour steeped in aesthetic history.
When we arrived in Rome, our first destination was the Vatican. Along with hundreds of other sweaty, sticky, and sardine-packed tourists, we were corralled into the Sistine Chapel. However, before we could even catch our breath, a guard barked at all of us with a stern command of...

90 Days of Generosity...
God says in 2 Corinthians that He "loves a cheerful giver." We've got cheerful people all over the place as expressions of generosity abound throughout the congregation. What a JOY!
It was over 6 months ago that we first began praying about 90 Days of Generosity. Through the summer and into the first weeks of fall, our staff got excited about how God was working in the hearts of the "First Family" as plans were made and projects and opportunities were identified. Already we are seeing the fruits of generosity in the joyful embrace of...

MORE
It's coming...
Over the past year, several things have emerged through various venues in our congregation:
-A group of dedicated men began wondering how we could deploy our resources and impact our community. Meetings centered around how we could move from being primarily "inside" a building and get "outside" into our world with God's grace and good news through acts of ministry and service.
-A small team began asking questions and listening to passions within our congregation about new initiatives, needs, and dreams. We are so blessed...but some things were "out there", things that we could...

A while ago someone highlighted an easy way to know what people think about Christians. Google it.
Google, the search engine on most desktops, helps internet searchers by giving sugggestions on topics or highlighting the predominant searches others are making. Type in "Christians are" and then work your way through the alphabet. In a few moments it becomes apparent that the majority of "labels" or categories of filling in the blank are predominantly negative. Apparently we have a "PR" problem.
Add to that is the rise in the population of those who describe themselves as "none" (as in "none...